Two Tiny Tables Get Me Every Time

If moving and unpacking and getting settled isn’t enough for a summer, I decided we would throw a few projects into the mix. The first of which, was relatively simple and inspired by this IKEA hack. And by inspired, I mean, it was such a great idea I pretty much replicated it. Only twice. (Thanks, Katy!) We had two of these old IKEA laundry bags/stands. And since we’re not schlepping our clothes to communal laundry any longer, we no longer need these eye sores in our bedroom.

So, how exactly do we get from seen-better-days laundry bag to modern, sleek end table? Well, I’m so glad you asked. First, you measure your metal stand. Then you measure it again. Just to be sure. And write down the measurements while you’re at it. Then, if you’re like me, you go to your favorite hardware megastore and find a nice piece of wood that’ll show wood grain on all sides. Finally, show your measurements to the guy (or gal) near the big fancy saw and have them cut to your exact specs.

Before heading home, pick up some stain in a color you like and some spray paint too. Efficiency, people. We chose an almost natural color stain and we picked this brand because it was ready for a top coat of poly (which we already had) in only an hour. Love that.

For spray paint, we went with an oil rubbed bronze because it added a little something more than just your plain old black. Yeah, it’s getting fancy up in here. After a couple light coats of spray paint, I let these bad boys dry in the shed overnight, just to make sure they were cured and the spray paint smell was completely gone.

The next day, we all came back inside and got to gluing. I just used Elmer’s wood glue to attach the stained and sealed boards to the painted laundry stands. I grabbed a couple of heavy wood planks we had around to add some pressure—you could use clamps, if you’re really advanced and fancy, or books or a sleepy old cat, whichever you have.

And that’s it! A simple project that reuses an almost forgotten laundry bag. That is how you IKEA hack, my friends.